Most of us have heard or read the poem by Rudyard Kipling called “If”. Runners very often identify with the lines
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run
…especially during the last lap of the last set of interval runs. I as a runner today however, could very much relate to the lines:
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
A year ago, I have never ran further than a 6k fun run. Overweight and lacking stamina, it was due to the grace of my friends that encouraged me to take little steps towards being a distance runner. Finally I joined a marathon training program called Portland Fit in April this year to begin training properly for my first marathon. Months passed by, distances were covered, benchmarks came and went. I was becoming a stronger and faster runner every day. My pace went from 11minute+ to sub 10 as training progressed. I was satisified with what I achieved.
And then one day I went for an easy run which made me suffer more than a tempo run. I thought it was just a the heat. The next run, I felt worse. By the time I went for a 30k long run, I could only run 1/3 of it. Something was wrong. Days passed and my heart rate never went below 80 beats per minute while resting. After waiting to get a doctor’s appointment, I finally got to see one. My blood test result shows that I have a hyperactive thyroid gland. My body is driven into overdrive even without physical exertion. Running became impossible as my heart would race to beyond 190 bpm at a conservative pace. Devastated I was. A broken body + no endorphins from running = a really gloomy person. Even worse was the fact that the Portland Marathon which is supposed to be my first marathon was just weeks away.
I spent 4 weeks off running and started medication which doesn’t seem to make a dent in my condition. Finally I decided not rot away any longer. Put on those running shoes and went out to… walk. And then a little jog here and there. Really slow but at least I’m not reaching 170 bpm. Running… really running is no longer an option for my maiden 26.2. God willing, I will be able to jog/ walk/ crawl to the finish line this weekend. Somehow, just making myself jog/ walk has allowed me to make peace with my condition.
It’s 3 days to the marathon for me and my heart rate is not making much positive progress. If there is any salvation here, it is that I have learned to, like how John “The Penguin” Bingham said, waddle and maintain a stable and aerobic heart rate. The upside to all this is that I am feeling minimal pre-race jitters. To me, I only need to get to the starting line and complete the marathon. This Sunday, I will face my first 26.2. But it has been way more miles getting to the starting line and it was a wonderful journey. A journey made so life-changing not only by the road beneath my feet, but my wife, friends and all the Portland Fit folks.
